It's like an underground city down there. Not only does it have classrooms and offices, but there are also stores, a museum, a spa, and a bowling alley.
—SOMEONE DESCRIBING THE CRITCHLORE CASTLE DUNGEON
We reached the entrance to the holding cell hall. The guards were gone, but when we opened the door, we saw an ogreman sitting in a chair in front of the last cell. I closed the door and looked at Frankie.
Up until now, I hadn't done anything wrong. I hadn't broken any rules. But as soon as we entered that hallway, I would become something new—a rule breaker.
I took a deep breath to calm myself. "Okay, Frankie, what was Darthin's plan?"
"I don't know. I thought you knew."
Oh no. All this time, as nervous as I was, I still had a certain confidence that Darthin's plan would lead to a quick getaway. Now we were doomed.
"Go on," Pismo said, pushing me forward. "We'll improvise."
I opened the door, and we dashed into a dark, doorless cell hidden from the guard's view. He was playing a video game on a handheld device and didn't look up.
"Sounds like Monster Blaster Four," Pismo whispered. "He's at level thirteen, right before the troll shows up and stomps the villagers."
"How are we going to get past him?" Frankie asked.
"You guys stay here. I'll lure him out," Pismo said.
Before I could ask him what he was going to do, he left. He walked straight down the hallway, like he wasn't even trying to hide from the guard. Frankie and I watched from the shadows, knowing we couldn't be seen.
"Level thirteen is a beast," Pismo said.
The guard startled. "Hey, kid. You're not supposed to be down here."
"I know. I heard the roar of the bellicose troll and had to see you beat him. I've done it fourteen times. It never gets old."
"You've beaten the bellicose troll?"
"Sure," Pismo said. "Want me to show you?"
"Yes! I've been stuck on this level forever."
"There's just one thing," Pismo said. "See, I'm a merman—please don't tell anyone—and I've got to get in the water soon or my legs will turn into a fish tail. Can we go down the hall to the grotto?"
Smart thinking, Pismo. I smiled at Frankie, and he nodded.
"You don't need to go that far," the guard said. "See that cell over there? The underground river comes up in the corner. You can put your legs in there."
Oops. There went Pismo's plan.
"Really? Okay."
Frankie and I listened while Pismo defeated the bellicose troll. He gave us a running commentary on his moves. The guard laughed and kept saying, "No way!" I looked at Frankie and pointed to my wrist, as if I had a watch there. We didn't have much time.
"Dude," Pismo said. "Looks like your battery is almost dead. Hand me your charger."
"Charger?"
"Yeah. If we plug this in quickly, you won't lose your spot."
"Plug it in where?" the guard asked. There weren't any electrical outlets in the dungeon.
"Uh-oh," Pismo said. "We didn't save the game at the last checkpoint. We'll lose everything if you don't get this plugged in."
"My charger's in the office. Upstairs."
"I'll stay here and watch your prisoner. You go plug it in."
The guard was silent.
"You can trust me," Pismo said. "I told you my secret, after all. Plus I'm taking Professor Dungely's Prisoner-Watching Seminar. Go."
"I had to take that twice," the guard said. "I kept failing the practical exam."
"It's difficult," Pismo said. "I think you're doing an awesome job. Go on. It will only be a few minutes."
"Okay, I'll be right back."
Frankie and I ducked back into the shadows as the guard raced by. Then we ran to Pismo, who was drying himself off with his towel.
"That was too easy," Pismo said. "No wonder he failed the practical."
"Prisoner-Watching Seminar?" I asked.
Pismo smiled and nodded. "I need the extra credit. You guys have three minutes, maybe two."
The metal door had a small window I could look through if I stood on tiptoes. I saw the Girl Explorer huddled in the corner of the cell, lit by a dull lightbulb hanging from the ceiling. Holding my medallion, I saw her monster form. Dung beetles, I'd never seen a more frightening beast, with those jagged teeth, powerful horns, and sharp, sharp claws. I felt the scrapes on my chest and knew that if she'd closed her fist, her claws would've dug out half my torso.
I tried to swallow over the lump of fear stuck in my throat.
"Hello?" I said. She looked up. "We're here to rescue you." I turned to Frankie. "Can you pull this door open?"
Frankie grabbed the door and pulled. The metal squeaked and screamed as it was pried off the hinges. The monster ran out.
"Just shove it back in the doorway," I told Frankie. It looked a little bent, but hopefully the guard wouldn't notice. "Let's go."
"Take her to the grotto," Pismo said. "I'll meet you there."
Running next to the most fearsome monster I'd ever seen was terrifying, but her glamour worked as long as I didn't touch my medallion with my hand. I told myself I was just running with a little girl.
We reached the grotto, a deep underground cave that opened up off the hallway. A string of dim lightbulbs circled a subterranean lake, each one hanging above a sign that warned of the danger of stepping too close to the water. The cave was eerily quiet, except for the echoing pings of water dripping from the stalactites covering the ceiling.
"What's your name?" I asked the monster.
"Saradakbecoveltorpiclowin," she said. She leaned over the water and took a sip, sending out ripples.
"Can I call you Sara?"
"Yes, little one of the fameely."
"Where is the broken place you said you're from?" I whispered.
"Far away. Eet beautiful. Lots of trees and mountains. We leeved in forest. Not many trees at new home."
Trees and mountains. "Is it near the Etarne Cliffs?"
"Don't know that place. We want to go home. Don't leek Pravus."
Frankie took a step toward the water. "Something's moving down there," he said.
"Step back," I told him. To Sara, I said, "Why can't you leave Pravus?"
"Have to obey Pravus. He defeated the fameely." She approached me, grabbing my arm. She's just a girl, I told myself, heart racing. Just a girl. "Eef you come for us, we can leave. The spell says obey the fameely feerst, captor second. Pravus not fameely. Says fameely dead. He ees master now. But you have medallion. You smell right. Fameely. You weel save us."
Interesting. I'd never been told that I smelled right before. Still, I didn't understand what she meant.
I was about to ask another question when Frankie screamed. In the stillness of the cave, his scream was as startling as a crack of thunder. I turned to see him on his back, a thick tentacle wrapped around his leg, dragging him into the water.
I grabbed him, but I knew I wasn't going to win a tug-of-war against the flesh-eating fish monster. "Sara! Help!"
Sara hopped over, landing on the tentacle. In a flash, it flew back into the water. Frankie scooched away as fast as he could. We both crouched against the wall, trying to get as far away from the water as we could.
"Thanks, Sara," Frankie said.
"Is Clarence trying to make friends again?" Pismo had entered the grotto, smiling wide. "I told him not to grab people."
The fish monster's clammy head popped out of the water. A low growl filled the dark cavern, echoing off the rocky walls.
Sara growled back, edging closer to the water, which made me nervous.
Something flew out of the water and hit her with a splat. She reared back and then looked down at a huge, dead fish, as big as an ogre's foot, lying on the gravel. She bent over it, made some growling, gurgling sounds, and when she stood back, the fish was nothing but bones.
"Land piranha," I whispered, remembering the nickname for Sara's kind.
"There you go, Clarence!" Pismo shouted. To us, he said, "I think he likes her."
"Runt, we need to get back to the movie," Frankie said.
"Tell your monster friend to hide in the cave at the far end of this wall," Pismo said. "She'll be safe there."
"Sara?" I asked.
"I stay in cave," Sara said. "Thank you, young one."
"In the morning, we'll figure out what to do."
With that, Frankie and I raced back to the movie. I waited in the hall while Frankie ran inside to get Boris so we could switch places. When they came out, I grabbed my hat from Boris's head. It was wet and smelled like soda.
"Sorry," he said. "Scary movie." He leaned toward me and whispered, "There was kissing." Then he shivered.
I went inside and took my seat next to Syke, who was soaked with soda and had popcorn stuck in her hair.
"The movie frightened him," Syke whispered. "Many times."
"Sorry," I said, stifling a laugh.
I felt someone's gaze and turned around. Rufus sat glaring at me. If suspicion had a face, he was wearing it.
